closg00 wrote:nate33 wrote:Jay81 wrote:There is a lot of small guards dominating.
Brunson maxey…Edwards is only 6-4…kyrie Irving…Donovan Mitchell
Don’t over think it on dillingham and reed
Edward's coach says he has grown to 6'-6". He has a 6'-10" wingspan. Definitely not a small guard. I can't even think of many starting SG's who are bigger.
Donovan Mitchell has an incredible 6'-10" wingspan and is built like a tank. I wouldn't call him a small guard, particularly when he plays point. Cleveland's real small guard, Darius Garland, is averaging just 14, 6 and 4 and has a -10.9 on/off differential in the playoffs.
Kyrie is doing well, but he is part of the reason Dallas has a flawed roster. He isn't good enough to be the #1 option, so he has to be a #2. And it's really hard to find a #1 option who is also a good defender, so the end result is Dallas has two defensive liabilities they have to cover for. The only way to do that is with a bunch of exceptionally good defenders who can also hit 3's. But you can't afford exceptionally good 3&D players when you are paying your stars max money.
Maxey has the incredible good fortune of playing alongside an elite #1 option who isn't a defensive liability, so Philly can put 4 good defenders around him. Philly was 16-27 in the 43 games that Embiid missed.
Brunson is remarkable, truly one of my favorite players to watch. But even with him, you can see the problem. Thibs has no confidence in putting any non-defenders on the court alongside him so the Knicks offense is totally dependent on Brunson. Nobody else can do anything. Still, I'd say Brunson is the best-case scenario if you have a small guard. Most of the time, you will end up with a Trae Young, or Darius Garland situation.
I still wouldn't take Dillingham. I buy that he might be the best regular-season player in the draft, but I still don't think you can advance in the playoffs with a guy like that. Indeed, he might be detrimental to a rebuild because he might help us win too many regular season games ahead of schedule and convince management to go all in around him as our star. The next thing you know, we're the Atlanta Hawks.
There have been taller PG’s who were defensive liabilities as-well, or even taller guards. Tony Parker was 6”2 and got multiple rings, so who knows Dillinghams, or the 6”6 Topic’s fate, he may get roasted on D as-well in the NBA.
It was a different game in the Tony Parker era. With the current emphasis on spacing, it's much easier to hunt mismatches because it's harder to provide help defense.